It could be as high as 50 percent of the people. That were formerly in Obamacare or didn’t have insurance. “We’ve created associations, millions of people are joining associations. They feel empathy and intimacy, an acceptance of what’s being said, and good feeling towards him – and this is an unconscious, automatic reaction. What’s more, says Lakoff (2017), Trump often starts a sentence and allows his followers to finish the sentence in their minds. He appears as more relatable because he speaks the way we all do. Why do Trump’s fragmented sentences stand out so much? Because they’re uncommon in formal public speeches, which are usually written, rehearsed, and read more or less verbatim from a teleprompter. “And in 19 - and I will tell you this, and I said it very strongly, years ago, I said - and I love the military, and I want to have the strongest military that we’ve ever had, and we need it more now than ever.” Whatever the issue, Trumpian speech puts things into terms that are kinder to his brand.įragmented sentences are natural and common in everyday speech, regardless of language and the speaker’s geographical origin, social class or educational background. If he’s accused of sexism, he says he rejects imposed political correctness. If he’s accused of racism, he says he’s pro-security. How does he get away with it? Trump spins negativity instead of defending against it. Moreover, Trump has expressed unapologetic criticism of opponents, religious groups, developing countries, the disabled and women (Schmitt, 2015), in ways that were unacceptable for those who went before him. This is “rhetoric that rarely pierces mainstream political discourse in the US,” says McClay (2017). He’s spoken of ripping up trade deals, he’s criticised allies, and he’s praised enemies. Trump doesn’t repeat phrases accidentally, says Liberman (in Golshan, 2016) “for the most part, he’s providing emphasis”.Īs a billionaire real estate mogul born and raised in New York, Trump has a casual tone and is known for straight talk. When Trump refers to Hillary Clinton as “crooked” or cites terrorists as “radical Muslims”, he’s strengthening those associations through repetition. Repetition, including Trumpian favourite “you know?”, also builds up trust with a listener. It’s used for emphasis, to express solidarity with or validation of another person’s point of view, to link ideas in discourse, and to aid in memory. Because repetition has important functions. But why? Is there “method in what others may portray as his madness” (Inzaurralde, 2017)? Perhaps. Then, when Trump wants to make a point, he makes it multiple times. He uses phrases like “very, very” and “many, many”, as well as the rare “super-duper” (Inzaurralde, 2017). To Trump, things are terrible or incredible best or worst. ![]() Hyperbole means exaggeration intensifiers are adverbs used to give force or emphasis, like ‘really’, ‘extremely’, ‘enormously’, etc. He rallies his audiences through impassioned, targeted conversation, even if this is one-sided and usually doesn’t follow a clear narrative arc.ĭan Libit, CNBC analyst (quoted in Lakoff, 2017), expresses his belief that Trump is careful and strategic in his use of language, using unique ‘tics’ like intensifiers, fragments and sales talk to connect with his audience.ġ. On the other hand, a dissection of Trumpian speech patterns suggests that the unusual way he speaks has its roots in oral culture (Golshan, 2016). Are these the output, as many journalists, academics and scientists suggest, of a disordered mind? They’re not sustained arguments but rather a mishmash of disjointed statements that don’t combine into something greater. ![]() On the one hand, Barton Swaim, one-time speechwriter for former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, points out (in Schmitt, 2015) that Trumpian speeches are characterised by broken sentences and bizarre asides. ![]() ![]() Let’s look at six of the linguistic devices commonly used in Trumpian speech: hyperbole, repetition and intensifiers directness sentence fragments digressions and segues grade level and sales talk. Now, is this deliberate and strategic, or are Trump’s explosive noun phrases, self-interruptions, departures from the theme, flashes of memory and side remarks symptomatic of a person with a concentration problem? Sedensky (2017) points out that Trump’s is “a brand of presidential oratory not previously recorded different from what the public come to expect”. In many ways, he’s used language to create a brand for himself one that leverages a feeling of strength, a sense of determination, and an impression that he can get the job done. Like him or hate him, President Donald Trump is a unique politician because he doesn’t speak like one. Is Trump’s unique brand of presidential oratory deliberate and strategic, is it the disjointed output of a disordered mind, or is it something else?
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